After 6 years of internal crisis, the Supreme Court has cleared all the hurdles hampering the All Progressives Congress (APC) progress in Rivers State.
After years of painstaking litigation between two factions of the APC led by the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi and Senator Magnus Abe resolved that the party and her decisions are supreme.
Consequently, in a judgment read by Amina Adamu Augie, JSC, the Court upheld the Appeal Court ruling. It declared Isaac Abbot-Ogbogbula, Chairman of the APC in Rivers State, following his appointment by the party’s national leadership.
Justice Augie on Igo Aguma v All Progressives Congress & 2 Ors (SC.17/2021) resolved that the decision of the trial court presided over by Justice George Omereji (rtd) of the Rivers State High Court was out of place because the court lacked the jurisdiction to hear the matter.
“A political party is Supreme over its own affairs. The Appeal is meritorious. Onuoha v. Okafor; A party is like a club with voluntary membership to be so bound by its own rules. The issue of leadership is an internal domestic affair, and the jurisdiction of the Court is ousted. The subject matter of the Appeal is not justifiable. The Cross-Appeal is struck out,” the court declared.
On the suit by Dele Moses & Others, the court said the matter was not heard on its merit.
The Supreme Court decided that it is not within the court’s purview to protect the rights and privileges of members of a political party, particularly the APC, because “that is an internal party matter.”
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